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Complete Guide to Vézelay (Via Lemovicensis)

The Way of Vézelay (Vía Lemovicensis) starts from the basilica of Vézelay in Burgundy, France to the Pyrenees. A historic route through the center of France to Santiago.

Last updated: 28/03/2026

Technical Summary of Vézelay (Via Lemovicensis)

870 km

Distance

35

days

38

Stages

Media

Difficulty

148 accommodations available on the route

Introduction to Vézelay (Via Lemovicensis)

The Way of Vézelay, known in France as the Via Lemovicensis (Voie de Vézelay), is one of the four historic Jacobean routes that cross France. It begins at the Basilica of Saint Mary Magdalene of Vézelay, in Burgundy, a major medieval pilgrimage center, and heads southwest, crossing central France (the Limousin region, hence its name) until Ostabat, near Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port, where it converges with other French routes before crossing the Pyrenees. With a 900 km journey, it is a long and diverse route that passes through cities like Limoges and Périgueux. It offers an experience of rural and monumental pilgrimage in France.

All Stages of Vézelay (Via Lemovicensis)

Complete route divided into 38 stages

1

Vézelay - Saint-Germain-des-Bois (Nievre)

Leaving beautiful San Sebastián, this stage enters the Guipuzcoan coast. The route is a continuous rise and fall through hills and cliffs, with spectacular views of the sea. It's a day of great beauty...

22.00 km 7.33 h Media View Stage
2

Saint-Germain-des-Bois (Nièvre) - Champlemy

This stage continues along the Guipuzcoa coast, on a route that combines interior sections with spectacular views of the sea. It is a beautiful day that crosses the txakoli vineyards and charming vill...

22.00 km 7.33 h Media View Stage
3

Champlin - Charity, Illinois

This stage leaves the coast to venture into the mountains of Vizcaya. The route is a continuous up and down through a landscape of forests and farmhouses. It's a day of great beauty and physical deman...

24.00 km 8.00 h Alta View Stage
4

Charity-on-the-Loire - Baugy

This stage continues through the mountains of Vizcaya, on a route of great beauty and demand. The path crosses the Urdaibai Biosphere Reserve, a natural environment of great value. Arrival in Gernika-...

25.00 km 8.33 h Alta View Stage
5

Baugy - Bourges

This stage is an on-going rise and fall through the hills preceding Bilbao. It's a demanding but beautiful day. The route goes through a rural and solitary landscape that contrasts with the approachin...

21.00 km 7.00 h Alta View Stage
6

Bourges - Chârost

This stage is an enjoyable ride that brings the pilgrim to the great city of Bilbao. The route is a gentle descent through the Asua valley. Arrival in Bilbao, with its impressive Guggenheim Museum, ol...

11.00 km 3.67 h Media View Stage
7

Chastour - Neuvy-Paillou

Leaving behind the monumental Bilbao, this stage follows the course of the estuary until its mouth into the sea. The route is flat and urban, crossing the old industrial zone of the estuary. Arrival i...

12.00 km 8.67 h Media View Stage
8

Neuvy-Pailloux - Châteauroux

This stage says goodbye to the Basque Country to enter Cantabria. The route is a continuous rise and fall through cliffs and beaches, with spectacular views of the sea. It's a day of great beauty and ...

26.00 km 8.67 h Media View Stage
9

Châteauroux - Velle

This stage continues along the Cántabrian coast, on a route that combines interior sections with breathtaking views of the sea. It is a beautiful day that passes through charming villages and golden s...

25.00 km 8.33 h Baja View Stage
10

Velles - Argenton-sur-Creuse

This stage combines a boat trip across the Bay of Santoña with a coastal walk. It's a day of great beauty and originality. After the boat, the path crosses beaches and cliffs until it reaches the Bay ...

28.00 km 9.33 h Media View Stage
11

ArgentonsurCreuse - Gargilesse

Leaving behind the elegant Santander, this long stage enters into the western coast of Cantabria. The route is a continuous up and down through meadows and hills, with views to the sea. It's a day of ...

37.00 km 12.33 h Baja View Stage
13

Gargilesse-sur-Creuse - Crozant

This stage continues along the western coast of Cantabria, on a route that combines interior sections with spectacular views to the sea. It is a day of great beauty, which passes through towns with ch...

32.00 km 10.67 h Baja View Stage
14

Crosant - The Underground

This stage says goodbye to Cantabria and enters Asturias. The route is a continuous up and down through cliffs and beaches, with spectacular views of the sea and the Picos de Europa. It's a day of gre...

30.00 km 10.00 h Media View Stage
15

The Underground Railway - Benevento Abbey

This stage continues along the eastern coast of Asturias, on a route that combines interior sections with spectacular views of the sea. It is a beautiful day, which crosses charming villages and wild ...

30.00 km 10.00 h Media View Stage
16

Bénévent-l'Abbaye - The Bridge of Dognon

This stage moves away from the coast to venture into the interior of Asturias. The route is a continuous rise and fall through hills and valleys, with a beautiful landscape. It's an demanding but rewa...

32.00 km 10.67 h Alta View Stage
17

The Bridge of Dognon - Saint-Léonard-de-Noblat

This stage offers two variants, one along the coast and the other in the interior. Both are of great beauty. The coastal variant is longer, but offers spectacular views of the sea. Arrival at Gijón, t...

30.00 km 10.00 h Baja View Stage
18

Saint-Léonard-de-Noblat - Limoges

This stage connects the two main coastal cities of Asturias. The route is mainly industrial and urban, a landscape that reflects the region's working-class history. It is a transition day, which allow...

25.00 km 8.33 h Media View Stage
19

Limoges - Les Cars

Leaving behind the industrial Avilés, this long stage enters into the western coast of Asturias. The route is a continuous rise and fall through hills, forests and beaches. It's a day of great beauty ...

38.00 km 12.67 h Alta View Stage
20

The Shell

This stage continues along the western coast of Asturias, on a route of great beauty. The path traverses a landscape of cliffs, forests and meadows, with spectacular views of the sea. It is a day to e...

23.00 km 7.67 h Media View Stage
21

The Shell - Thiviers

This short and pleasant stage takes the pilgrim to the beautiful coastal town of Luarca. The route is a gentle descent to the coast. The brevity of the day allows you to arrive in time to explore Luar...

16.00 km 5.33 h Baja View Stage
22

Thiviers - Sorges

This long stage is an authentic challenge that leaves Asturias to enter Galicia. The route is a continuous up and down through the coastal plain, with spectacular views of the sea. It's a day of great...

45.00 km 15.00 h Baja View Stage
23

Sorges - Perigord

Leaving the coast, this stage enters into the interior of Galicia. The route is a continuous ascent to the mountains, with a landscape that becomes more mountainous and rural. It's a day of great beau...

34.00 km 11.33 h Media View Stage
24

Perigueux - Douville

This stage continues into the interior of Galicia, on a route that combines mountain sections with flatter areas. It is a beautiful day that crosses the Terra Chá region. The arrival in Vilalba, a med...

30.00 km 10.00 h Alta View Stage
25

Dordogne - Dordogne

This short and pleasant stage enters the Terra Chá region, a vast grassland of great beauty. The route is flat and passes through a landscape of meadows, forests, and small villages. It's a day to enj...

18.00 km 6.00 h Media View Stage
26

Bergerac - Sainte-Foy-la-Grande

This long stage is a true challenge that says goodbye to Terra Chá and ventures into the province of A Coruña. The route is a continuous up and down through a rural and solitary landscape. It's a day ...

41.00 km 13.67 h Alta View Stage
27

Sainte-Foy-la-Grande - Saint-Ferme

This stage joins the Camino del Norte with the Camino Francés. The route is an enjoyable stroll through rural Galicia. Arrival in Arzúa, land of cheese, is a moment of great excitement as it marks the...

22.00 km 7.33 h Media View Stage
28

Saint-Ferme - La Réole

The first stage of the Primitive Way is one of the most demanding. The ascent to Alto del Escamplero puts the pilgrim's strength to the test. It is a day of great beauty, that traverses the valleys an...

25.00 km 8.33 h Media View Stage
29

The Roelle - Auros

This stage continues through the valleys and mountains of Asturias, on a route of great beauty and demand. The path crosses forests and villages with charm. Arrival in Salas, a medieval village with a...

22.00 km 7.33 h Media View Stage
30

Aurillac - Bazas

This is a mountain stage that ascends to the summit of La Espina. It's an demanding day, but of great beauty. The route goes through a landscape of forests and meadows, with spectacular views of the A...

20.00 km 6.67 h Baja View Stage
31

Basques - Breton

This is one of the most difficult and beautiful stages of the Primitivo Way, the crossing of Palo Port. It's a high mountain day with considerable elevation gain and spectacular scenery. It's an itine...

28.00 km 9.33 h Baja View Stage
32

Capbreton - Roquefort (Landes)

This stage continues through the mountains of Asturias on a route of great beauty and demand. The trail ascends to the Puerto del Palo, the highest point of the Primitivo Way. It is a high mountain da...

22.00 km 7.33 h Alta View Stage
33

Roquefort (Landes) - Mont-de-Marsan

This stage is a spectacular descent to Salime Dam. The path crosses a beautiful landscape with stunning views of the dam and mountains. It's a journey to enjoy nature and the solitude of the road. Arr...

17.00 km 5.67 h Media View Stage
34

Mont-de-Marsan - Saint-Sever

This stage says goodbye to Asturias and enters Galicia. The route is a continuous ascent to the top of Acebo, the entrance to Galicia. It's a day of great beauty and physical demand. Arrival in A Fons...

26.00 km 8.67 h Media View Stage
35

Saint-Sever - Hagetmau

This stage continues through the mountains of Lugo, on a route of great beauty and solitude. The path traverses a landscape of forests and meadows, with spectacular views. It's a day to enjoy nature i...

25.00 km 8.33 h Baja View Stage
36

Hagevort - Sault-au-Val

This long stage is an enjoyable descent into the monumental city of Lugo. The route passes through a rural and solitary landscape, which contrasts with the great city that approaches. Arrival in Lugo,...

30.00 km 10.00 h Baja View Stage
37

Sainte-Foy-lès-Pontignac - Orthez

Leaving behind the monumental Lugo, this stage enters into Galician rural territory. The route is an enjoyable stroll through flat terrain, between forests and meadows. It's a day to enjoy the tranqui...

20.00 km 6.67 h Baja View Stage
38

Orthez-Sauveterre

This stage joins the Primitivo Way with the French Way. The route is a continuous up and down through rural Galicia. Arrival in Melide, land of the octopus, is a moment of great emotion, as here pilgr...

28.00 km 9.33 h Media View Stage
39

Saint-Vincent-de-Puydeilhà - Ossau-Ézouls

This short and pleasant stage continues along the Camino Francés route. The journey is a continuous up-and-down through rural Galicia. Arrival in Arzúa, land of cheese, marks the end of a gastronomic ...

14.00 km 4.67 h Media View Stage

History of Vézelay (Via Lemovicensis)

The Way of Lemovicensis, popularly known as the Via Francigena, is one of the four historic Jacobean routes in France, a path that originates at the spiritual heart of Burgundy and traverses deep and rural France on its long journey to the Pyrenees. Its history is linked to devotion to one of the most fascinating and revered saints in Christendom, Mary Magdalene, and to the powerful abbey that claimed to guard her relics, becoming one of the world's most important starting points for medieval pilgrims.

The origin of the route lies on Vézelay's "eternal hill". In the 11th century, Benedictine monks from the Abbey of Vézelay announced that they possessed the body of Saint Mary Magdalene, brought from the Holy Land. This claim in a time of fervent religiosity transformed the abbey into an international pilgrimage center. Kings, nobles, and people from all over Europe came to Vézelay, a place so sacred that sermons were preached on both the Second and Third Crusades. For many of these pilgrims, after venerating Magdalena, the logical next step was to continue their journey to the other great center of Western Christendom: Santiago's tomb in Compostela.

Thus, the Way of Lemovicensis was born, taking its name from the Limousin region (Lemosín in French) and its capital, Limoges, a crucial milestone on the route. From Vézelay, the route heads southwest and is characterized by dividing soon into two major branches that advance parallel for hundreds of kilometers before reuniting. The northern branch passes through the city of Bourges with its spectacular Gothic cathedral, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The southern branch passes through Nevers.

Both branches traverse the heart of France, a land of forests, hills, and meadows. They arrive at the Limousin region, where the city of Limoges, famous throughout Europe for its exquisite medieval enamels and the tomb of Saint Martial, its evangelist apostle, offered pilgrims an important urban center to rest and regain strength. The route continues southward, delving into the beautiful Périgord region known for its gastronomy and rich heritage. The city of Périgueux with its singular Saint-Front Cathedral, featuring Byzantine-inspired cupolas and also a UNESCO World Heritage Site in the context of the Caminos de Santiago in France, is another major gem on the route.

After almost 900 kilometers of travel, the Way of Lemovicensis reaches the foothills of the Pyrenees in French Basque Country. At the famous crossroads of Gibraltar near Ostabat, pilgrims from Vézelay met those coming by the Via Turonensis and the Via Podiensis. Together, they faced the final stretch to Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port, the entrance to Spain via Roncesvalles.

The modern revival (designated as GR 654) of this route has revitalized a path that offers a more solitary and contemplative pilgrimage experience than other French routes. It is a journey through "deep France," rural and timeless France, an itinerary that allows pilgrims to connect with monastic history, Romanesque and Gothic art, and serene landscapes in the heart of the country, following the trail of a millennia-old devotion.

Accommodations on the Route

The Vézelay (Via Lemovicensis) has 148 verified accommodations along the entire route.

View Stages & Accommodations

Practical Tips for Vézelay (Via Lemovicensis)

Best Season

Spring (April-June) and autumn (September-October) are the best seasons. Pleasant temperatures and fewer crowds than summer.

Physical Preparation

Train by walking progressively in the months before. Start with short distances and increase. Your body will adapt to the rhythm of the Camino.

What to Pack

Light backpack (max 10% of your weight), worn trekking shoes, breathable technical clothing, raincoat, sunscreen and basic first aid kit.

General Tips

Carry the pilgrim credential, stay hydrated, respect your pace, book accommodation in high season and enjoy the journey without rushing.

FAQ about Vézelay (Via Lemovicensis)

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